


Prince of Land & Prince of Sea [One-shot]

by IJustWantMyTea



Category: Kuroshitsuji | Black Butler
Genre: Alois is a mess, Ciel is a Prince too, Eventual part II, Human!Sebastian, I rlly wanna rewrite this and explain things better and give it way more plot and depth and emotion, M/M, Mer!Alois, Prince of the sea Alois, Sea witch!Claude, Ship Wrecks, loosely based off of the little mermaid, mermaid au, might be rewritten as a full fic, pls I wrote this in the span of 6 hrs fueled by energy drinks, smol first kiss, subtle fluffy ending, this is also kinda ooc, very brief hand holding
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-11-24
Updated: 2018-11-24
Packaged: 2019-08-28 15:09:43
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,758
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16725762
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/IJustWantMyTea/pseuds/IJustWantMyTea
Summary: Merfolk are proud of their tails, even more proud of their enchanting voices, they steer clear of humans at all costs, some even regard them as nothing but food. So why would one choose to give up everything that was dear to them in order to see a human again? A human that would have lived a life without guilt or grief if they never saw the mer that saved them again.





	Prince of Land & Prince of Sea [One-shot]

  
Lightning split the sky in two, followed by a crash of thunder so loud it could be felt reverberating through the boots of the ship’s crew, scrambling to keep the vessel afloat as it was tossed about by the raging waves of the ocean.

 

A young boy, no more than eighteen was the Captain of the Full Rigged Pinnace, barking orders as he tried to steer his beloved ship away from the rocky outcrops that the howling wind and thrashing waters seemed so desperate to launch them into.

 

From not so far off, a creature who was only thought to exist in folk lore and children’s story books was watching, large, pale blue eyes blinking curiously as they observed humans scrambling to save their lives and their vessel. The Capitan seemed to have captivated this creature the most, its eyes following his every movement as he commanded a recklessly loyal group of men. This wasn’t a treasure that it had to have, something to be kept and cherished, kept secret from the rest of its brethren and away from the humans who would most likely try and retrieve him. The very sight of this human set his heart aflame in a way he had never experienced before, and it had him feeling warm all over.

 

Lady Luck had to be on its side, because not moments after the fairy tale legend had mentally staked its claim on the young Captain, a rolling wave larger than life hammered into the ship, smashing it against the dagger like rocks the humans so desperately tried to keep it from. Masts snapped and rigging tangled together like a mess of spider webs, and the Captain was tossed into the frothy, swirling waters.

 

A tail slapped against slime covered rocks and webbed hands helped to launch the mer into the sea, gills fluttering as the seaweed green and deep royal purple blur rocketed towards the Captain.

 

Long claws dug into a heavy, navy blue coat, dragging the nearly-drowned human to the surface. It was a struggle to keep the Captain's head up and above the vicious waters, but somehow the fish-tailed being managed.

 

The Captain was dragged to the shore in a small cove that was fairly hidden from the storm and the mer hovered over him, fins on its tail twitching in some form of excitement as webbed fingers poked at a curiously shaped nose and tugged at rounded ears.

 

Mouth to mouth resuscitation or any form of CPR was a foreign and unheard of concept to the mer, instead, it tried to shake the human man awake, smacking at his cheeks and making a loud, trilling screech noise.

 

Ciel woke to a wet, clammy hand patting his face repeatedly and he sat bolt upright, gagging and vomiting up warm sea water. A surprised gasp had him looking to his right, and the sight was enough to make him shout in fear and scramble backwards in the sand.

 

Staring at him was boy with a tail twice the length of his torso, head cocked to the side and frilled ears twitching. Wide eyes with slit pupils like a cat’s were glued to him, watching his every move. Fins on the creature’s forearms and running along the creature’s spine seemed to glitter in the dull light as though they were made of translucent silver.

 

“Wh-What are you?”

 

Ciel’s voice was tentative and shaky, hands up to protect himself from whatever was in front of him. The mer gave no answer, clawing his way forwards, tail moving like a snake. The young Captain found the sight terrifying and scooted further backwards until he felt his back pressed up against cold rock.

 

“Stay back! Don’t you dare come any closer!”

 

Either the mer didn’t understand Ciel, or he was playing dumb, as he only slithered and clawed his way right up to Ciel, leaning close to his face and sniffing the human with an upturned nose. Now that he was uncomfortably close, Ciel could see rings of silver around his pupils and soft, pale scales dotting around the fish-man’s temples and nose.

 

“Mine~”

 

The mer hissed out the single word in a soft, melodic, though somewhat scratchy voice, lips pulling into an eager grin that revealed alarmingly sharp teeth.

 

“Get back! No!”

 

Ciel scrambled to his feet, grabbing at the rock for purchase and shuffling around it, putting the solid, immovable object between himself and the nightmare inducing creature. He had no idea as to what part of the beach the merman had brought him to, but he was sure he’d be able to find his way back, or at least somewhere that would be out of reach of the blonde.

 

The mer crawling around the rock was expected, but Ciel couldn’t fathom what he was seeing when it began to scramble over it, reaching the top in a split second and throwing itself onto him, claws digging into his wrists and pinning him down.

 

No amount of screaming or thrashing would free him, he was sure the mer weighed at least three times as much as he did, especially with the gigantic tail coiled up on his legs.

 

“Stop running, little human. I found you, you’re my treasure now!”

 

Trilling, the merman bumped its nose against Ciel’s the end of his tail thumping against his captive’s legs in joy and Ciel couldn’t help but briefly think that he was like an excited dog with broken English.

 

“You can’t just keep me dammit!”

 

“Why not?”

 

Ciel was shocked by the genuine confusion, sighing and letting his head thump into the sand in defeat. He knew trying to explain to someone who didn’t even have a basic understanding of what was socially acceptable would almost be impossible, so he would try another approach.

 

“I have lots of people back on land that I need to look after. I need to repair my ship and I need to see if any of my crew survived the shipwreck…”

 

The mer let out an irritated trill, somehow perfect brows furrowed and a pout on full lips, thoroughly disappointed that his human didn’t want to stay with him, that he was scared of him. Were his scales not beautiful enough to catch the human’s eye?

 

“No! Stay! You’re mine!”

 

The young Phantomhive scoffed and sighed, trying to yank one of his hands free, to no avail. This was becoming ridiculous. If he stayed here much longer, it would be too dark for him to attempt to find his way back home, which was not what he wanted.

 

“I don’t even know your name! Stupid fish!”

 

It was a snappy and childish remark, but it seemed to get under his captor’s scales enough to provoke a rise out of him.

 

“I’m not a stupid fish! I’m a mer and my name is Alois, you stupid human!”

 

Alois was much too normal of a name for such an abnormal creature in Ciel’s opinion, but he made no comment on it, instead he began plotting his next idea for escape.

 

“I tell you what, if you let me go now, I’ll come back here tomorrow afternoon, and I’ll bring you plenty of land treasures, lots of pretty things for a pretty mermaid…”

 

He wasn’t sure if this would be considered flirting, and he didn’t want it to be. He would never hear the end of it from Sebastian if he found out that the young prince was flirting with a merman to gain his freedom.

 

It seemed to have worked a charm though, because Alois had gasped in delight, tail writhing in excitement as he stared down at Ciel, gills fluttering. He was wrong about his land-walker, it just took a little bit for him to realise just how gorgeous he was!

 

“Really? You think I’m pretty? You promise you’ll come back!?”

 

Ciel almost felt bad for the gullible creature, but he nodded and mumbled a half-hearted promise, the pressure on his wrists and legs being relieved seconds after the words left his mouth.

 

“Okay then. I’ll be waiting for you! Don’t forget!”

 

Phantomhive stood, dusting the sand from himself as best he could and began to walk, resisting the urge to run as fast as his legs could carry him, and instead keep his pace to a brisk walk.

 

“Uh, little human… You’re going the wrong way. If you follow the cliff that way, it’ll take you to where you keep all your big sea homes.”

 

The prince felt his face burn red in embarrassment, but he turned on his heel and headed for the direction that the webbed finger was pointing. The second he turned the corner, he began to run, and he didn’t come back.

 

******

 

The mer waited for three days and three nights, convincing himself that his human was coming back, that he was just taking his time in picking the gifts that he promised. They had to be as pretty as himself after all!

 

Only after the fourth sunrise did Alois give up hope, his human wasn’t coming back to him, so he would have to go find his human instead. Diving under the lazy waves, he swam. He swam as fast as his tail would allow him.

 

The young merman was taking a big risk, heading to what other merfolk called the demon of the seas in order for help. He was terrified of course, but there was no one else he knew of that could aid him in reaching his human on land.

 

Claude lived far passed the edges of the merfolk’s reef, where the rapids were always deadly overhead and where no light ever reached the seabed. Luminescent algae and seaweed the only sources of light.

 

Alois stayed floating by the entrance of a cave that was somehow darker than the ocean around him, calling inside instead of intruding and risking death.

“Mister Sea Demon Claude! I need your help please!”

 

After his fifth round of shouting into the dark mouth of the cave, spidery, black tentacles crept into the light, followed by a tall, pale, yellow eyed creature that was once a mer.

 

“And what on Earth could the faux Prince of the Ocean want my help for, hm?”

 

His voice was a low drawl, making Alois shiver and draw back, eyes darting to the side as he wrung his hands nervously. His anxious nature only amused Claude, a humourless chuckle leaving him.

 

“I want to walk… I want you to give me legs…”

 

“Legs? Why would you want such a thing, you vain little brat? Always bragging about how magnificent your tail is and now you want to trade it for two sticks of flesh?”

 

“Yes… I- I need to go find my human…”

 

Claude scoffed, shaking his head. But it seemed he would give the young mer what he so desired, as one inky black tentacle had wrapped around Alois’ wrist, dragging him into the depths of his cave. Everything was dark for what felt like the longest time, but eventually, there was a soft light and Alois found himself in the center of an underwater cavern lined with algae and filled with various trinkets and other oddities.

 

“If I give you legs. You give me your voice. A fair trade in my opinion. Many would be interested in the beautiful voice of the underwater prince.”

 

Alois seemed more than alarmed, but after a too brief deliberation, he nodded once in agreement, and then voiced it, condemning himself and sealing his fate with a single sentence.

 

“My voice for a pair of legs. That’s a fair trade I suppose...”

 

Claude smirked manically, tentacles and arms put to work in creating a sickening concoction to grant Alois the legs he was desperate for.

 

“Do you love this human, or is he just another of your silly treasures that you’re too stubborn to give up?”

 

He wasn’t at all surprised when all he received from Alois was a shrug, but it didn’t deter him in any way. However, Claude didn’t ask any further questions either.

 

“Does it really have to be my voice?”

 

“Yes. It’s almost, if not more, valuable than your scales, and I can’t strip you of those without killing you… However, if you manage to bring me the feathers of a raven, I might just return your voice to you…”

 

Alois perked up, nodding almost wildly in agreement to the deal. He would try his absolute hardest to have his voice returned to him, and he was sure he would be able to have his human help him with the task.

 

Not long after their little discussion, Claude was holding out a corked vial filled with a swirling, inky black liquid.

 

“Drink this once you reach the surface and you’ll have your legs. Now for your payment.”

 

Coughing and spluttering, Alois watched as Claude seemed to pull a tendril of murky purple ink from his throat, trapping it within a locket and tucking it away out of sight.

 

The mer opened his mouth experimentally, though no sound came out when he tried to ask if it had worked, and that was all the proof he needed to know it had. It was hard not to cry, now that he had condemned himself to muteness, but if it meant he was able to get to his human again, even if that human wanted nothing to do with him, it was worth it.

 

Maybe his human would like him more with legs? He truly hoped so, or none of this would even be worth it, and he would have given up his voice and his brilliant tail for a pair of legs for naught.

 

******

 

The swim back to the cove where he had first taken his beloved human was slow and almost leisurely, an attempt to savour the last time he would ever be able to swim like this. Dragging himself onto the shore, he dug his claws into the vial’s stopper and popped it open, knocking the contents back in one big gulp.

 

If he thought losing his voice was bad, the formation of his legs was worse. The pain was unbearable, sharp and burning. Alois would be screaming had he not traded away his voice, and once it was over, he lay curled up in the wet sand, breathing heavily and shaking.

 

The transformation wasn’t perfect, there were still smatterings of scales randomly over his body, his eyes still resembled that of a cat’s or a reptile’s, ears were still pointed, and nose still upturned. The mer glanced down at his legs, wriggling his toes and poking at them in nervous fascination before standing.

 

The first few steps were shaky, and he fell over more than he would like to admit, but soon enough he was walking steadily along the path that he had sent the Captain on four days ago, slowly adjusting to his new legs.

 

When the first boats came into view, Alois began to tread more carefully, and when he found a tattered length of sail, he tied it around himself in some attempt at modesty. He had noticed that humans were always covered in cloth, and he didn’t want to offend them by walking around without any kind of coverings.

 

The first mistake Alois had made was underestimating just how many humans there were, the second was underestimating just how much land there really was. How on earth was he meant to find his human in all of this mess?

 

It turns out, he didn’t have to go to his human, because the human came to him instead. After what must have been half an hour of wandering the docks, completely oblivious to the odd stares he was receiving, a pair of hands clamped down on his arms, shaking him violently and causing his head to snap back.

 

“Why the hell are you here?! How the hell are you here?!”

 

Alois blinked owlishly, staring down into the handsome face of his human, a weak smile tugging at his lips, his heart fluttering like a caged bird within his ribcage. It took a moment to process the question, but he did his best to answer. Making a cross over his throat with his fingers, he waited a moment and pointed to his legs, and then to Ciel.

 

“You can’t talk because you have legs? And you came to see me?”

 

Alois shook his head, and then nodded, trying to explain that Ciel had only guessed half right. He didn’t know how to convey exactly what had happened, but it seemed that his human didn’t care, because he was being dragged along and away from the docks.

 

“It doesn’t matter, we have to get some proper clothes on you and then you can explain exactly why you came. Didn’t you realise that I didn’t want to come back to you after four days?”

 

******

 

Head still hung in shame at Ciel’s earlier statement, Alois allowed himself to be dressed in whatever clothes his human deemed fit. Land-walker fashion was certainly awkward, and although Alois liked the colour scheme, he was soon shedding the coat and vest, just sitting in the white dress shirt, shorts, socks and boots.

 

“Now tell me, or at least as best as you can, how are you here and why.”

 

After a few minutes of gesturing and confusion, Ciel had seemed to decipher exactly what the mer sitting in front of him had been trying to explain. He had nodded slowly throughout, brow furrowed as he put the merman’s charades into words.

 

“You traded your voice for legs so you could come and ‘be with me’?”

 

Alois nodded with a big grin, ever so proud of his land-walker for figuring out what he was trying to explain so well and so fast, and Ciel took note of how his canines still seemed to be too sharp.

 

“That’s utterly ridiculous. You barely know me, and you do something like this? We aren’t lovers, not even friends. You should go back to wherever your home is.”

 

The dejected look on the blonde’s face was almost too much for him, and when he began to tear up, Ciel let out an impatient sigh, trying to conceal the guilt he felt with a fake air of annoyance and displeasure at the situation.

 

“Fine, fine. If you stop crying, you can stay here with me for now…”

 

It seemed those words alone were enough to perk Alois up, because now he was giving his human a big, watery smile and launching himself at the slightly shorter male in a hug. Foreheads ended up smacking into each other as momentum and lack of balance on Alois’ part brought them both tumbling to the ground.

 

Ciel shoved the mer with legs off of him, standing up hastily and brushing himself off, thoroughly embarrassed with the situation. The other boy sat on the floor, blinking in confusion and shaking his head, one hand pressed to his forehead as the subtle ache subsided.

 

“What am I going to do with you?”

 

An almost fond chuckle left the human prince, but he was soon back to his stern self, helping Alois from the floor and guiding him back to the chair, telling him to sit still and refrain from any more surprise hugs that would knock them both to the floor.

 

The odd moment was interrupted by a knock on the door and a tall, dark haired man dressed in all black with strikingly red eyes entering. He seemed amused to see the only remaining member of the royal family holding another boy down in a chair by his shoulders, even more amused with the subtle blush covering his cheeks.

 

“Oh my, it seems the young prince has a guest he didn’t tell me about~”

 

Ciel’s head shot up to glare at the man who had entered, arms retreating from Alois’ shoulders to fold tightly across his chest in a defensive position as the confused blonde looked between the two.

 

“Nobody asked for your input, Sebastian! It’s not like I invited him here, he just showed up!”

 

The man, apparently named Sebastian chuckled, a subtle, but not so sincere smile gracing his lips as he pushed in a small cart topped with cakes, a teapot and two cups, as though he already knew that Alois was here.

 

******

 

Months had passed, and much of the boys’ time was spent on and around Ciel’s still in repair ship, ‘Valkyrie’, mostly due to Alois’ fascination with it. During this time, Ciel had found himself growing fonder of the mute merman, relishing in the moments they could spend time together without untimely interruptions.

 

It was one of the days where they were both perched at the ship’s bow, leaning against each other and gazing into the glittering depths of the green and blue ocean, listening to the rhythmic lull of gentle waves against the ship.

 

“It still baffles me, you know… that you gave up your voice and your tail to come and find me, even after I lied to you and let you down and told you I wanted nothing to do with you…”

 

Alois looked up from the ocean and turned to face Ciel. Even without words, he tried his best to convey how he felt, why he did what he did, so he took Ciel’s hand and held it over his heart, the faintest of smiles present on his lips. There was no regret in his eyes, just gratitude and hope.

 

Ciel sighed, lacing their fingers together and letting their hands fall to rest between them, his stare settling somewhere on the horizon. It still confused him, how the merman could be so determined and dedicated towards finding him and ‘keeping’ him, especially when he was nowhere near being worth it.

 

The mer turned his whole body to face the human, using one hand to guide his face until their eyes met, and after what seemed like an eternity of gazing into what he thought were the most beautiful eyes in existence, he gently pressed both their noses and foreheads together, a more intimate version of the little nose-bump he gave Ciel on their first meeting.

 

Ciel was the one who took it a step further, pressing their lips together in a chaste kiss, pulling back a moment later and fighting the urge to divert his eyes from Alois’ face, instead maintaining eye-contact with the bewildered boy.

 

“I promise you we’re going to get your voice back, no matter what it takes or how long it takes…”

**Author's Note:**

> As of the 25th of Nov the first chapter of a full length fic for Prince of Land & Prince of Sea is underway. The fic will follow the same general plot as the one shot, but it will feel much less rushed and contain more plot, depth, emotion and general information. It will also have more time and care put into its creation. Most of the writing itself will be new or tweaked, apart from a few snippets from the one shot that I am exceptionally proud of. I hope to create a better thought out world, and even possibly steer further away from the story of the Little Mermaid as I write this.
> 
> ~ Feedback is appreciated and encouraged ~
> 
>  
> 
> psst guys I actually did it https://archiveofourown.org/works/16770934


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